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quell

 - 3 dictionary results

quell

  [kwel]
–verb (used with object)
1. to suppress; put an end to; extinguish: The troops quelled the rebellion quickly.
2. to vanquish; subdue.
3. to quiet or allay (emotions, anxieties, etc.): The child's mother quelled his fears of the thunder.
Use quell in a Sentence
Origin:
bef. 900; ME quellen, OE cwellan to kill; akin to ON kvelja to torment, G quälen to vex; cf. kill 1

Related forms:
quell⋅a⋅ble, adjective
queller, noun

Synonyms:
1, 2. crush, quash, overpower, overcome, defeat, conquer, quench. 3. calm, pacify, compose, hush.

Antonyms:
1, 2. foster. 3. agitate.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2010.
Cite This Source Link To quell
quell   (kwěl)   
tr.v.   quelled, quell·ing, quells

  1. To put down forcibly; suppress: Police quelled the riot.

  2. To pacify; quiet: finally quelled the children's fears.


[Middle English quellen, to kill, from Old English cwellan; see gwelə- in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

quell 
O.E. cwellan "to kill, murder, execute," from P.Gmc. *kwaljanan (cf. O.E. cwelan "to die," cwalu "violent death;" O.S. quellian "to torture, kill;" O.N. kvelja "to torment;" M.Du. quelen "to vex, tease, torment;" O.H.G. quellan "to suffer pain," Ger. qualen "to torment, torture"), from root *kwel-/*kwal- (cf. Armenian kelem "I torture;" O.C.S. zali "pain;" Lith. galas "end," gela "agony," gelati "to sting"). Milder sense of "suppress, extinguish" developed by c.1300.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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